This invention relates to a device and method for cleaning and descaling elongated or continuous stock materials, such as metal rod or wire. More particularly, the device of this invention incorporates abrasive throwing wheels to clean stock materials, such as metal or plastic wire, rod, or tubing, in a continuous or intermittent operation.
Due to the desire of the wire industry to discontinue use of acid to clean newly manufactured rod and wire, there is a need for a machine to descale and profile finish the product. Attempts have been made to shot blast the wire clean with steel media; however, these machines are adaptations from other industries and do not suit wire makers needs because:
1. The wire must be threaded through the machines often, and these machines are difficult to access causing long delays.
2. The poor positioning of the shot throwing devices makes them inefficient and maintenance intensive.
3. Their size prohibits use by city mills because of lack of space and no expansion room.
Thus, there is a need in the art for a descaling/finishing machine for metal wire and metal rod. The device should be of small size, provide efficient cleaning, be inexpensive and safe to operate over a range of material processing rates, and adaptable for use with a variety of other elongated or continuous stock materials.
This invention aids in fulfilling these needs in the art. More particularly, this invention provides:
a device for cleaning stock material, wherein the device comprises:
(A) an enclosed first blast chamber for receiving abrasive projected by two blast wheels, wherein the first blast chamber has a stock material inlet for passage of stock material into the first blast chamber and a stock material outlet for discharge of treated stock material from the first blast chamber; and
(B) an enclosed second blast chamber for receiving abrasive projected by two blast wheels, wherein the second blast chamber has a stock material inlet for receiving stock material from the stock material outlet of the first chamber, and a stock material outlet for discharge of treated stock material from the second blast chamber;
wherein each blast wheel projects abrasive in an abrasive pattern having a blast zone in each blast chamber such that each blast zone is in the path of the stock material passing through each blast chamber; and wherein xc2xc of the surface area of the stock material is treated in the blast zone of each blast wheel such that the whole surface area of the stock material is treated after the stock material passes through the first blast chamber and through the second blast chamber.